The Sea Taketh (Alex Singer) Read Online Free

plates.”
    *     *     *
    Jen ends up staying the night. She sleeps on the floor next to my bed and is gone before I wake to teach her water aerobics class at the Rec. Center.
    That morning, I stagger to the kitchen.
                  “Let’s take a look at that hand,” Gramps looks up from his coffee.
    I put out the stiff hand, and he carefully removes the gauze. He cleans and covers the wound with the ointment from Marjory. Then Gramps wraps it again.
                  “I’d really like a shower,” I say, holding my hand.
                  Gramps picks up an empty bread bag and shakes out the crumbs. He puts it over my hand, and duct tapes it around my wrist. “Feel free,” he says with smirk.
                  “You’re pretty good with duct tape,” I tease, knowing it is his tool of choice.
                  “Alex, Joe and I are going out today,” he abruptly says. “Don’t plan on us returning until Saturday. There’s plenty of food in the fridge and Jen’s going to stay to keep you company. Take care of that hand, and if you go near the beach, I’ll know.”
                  My shower is a blur. I thought that my fear of the sea would subside as I got older, but it seems to be getting worse. When Gramps is gone, I worry for him every second. The very air is thicker without him.
    Refer to Fact #1 – Being a fisherman is dangerous.
                  After draining the water heater of its hot water, I emerge from the shower. I use a pair of scissors to cut the bag off my hand before I put on a t-shirt and jeans. I find my clothes from the previous day to recover my twenty dollars before putting them in the laundry. When I shake out the sand, a seashell falls from my pocket.
                  “Oh,” I say to myself. “I forgot about you.”
                  I start the washer and head to my room. I put the twenty in my pocket and pick up my magnifying glass. I can’t pass up an opportunity to do a little science experiment. The shell is unassuming. It isn’t anything that tourists would be interested in buying. I inspect its tiny ridges, finding that it is some sort of mollusk. I try to open it, but it’s impossible, especially with my hurt hand. Pulling my shell reference book off my bookshelf, I check the lists of shells. It isn’t there. Every once in a while I find something unusual. Without a second thought, I add the shell to a small bowl full of foreign shells in my windowsill before heading out the door.
                  Jen’s waiting for me outside the second hand store. “You’re always late,” she teases when she sees me.
                  “How was practice and water aerobics?” I ask as we enter the shop. A bell rings behind us.
                  “Practice was a joke without you, but water aerobics with the grannies is best hour of the day,” she answers, laughing. “Have you given more thought about taking the lifeguard job? Fred’s had a lot of applicants but would love to hire you.”
                  “When does he want to know?”
                  “Tomorrow, but he won’t put you on the rotation until your hand is healed.”
                  “Tell him that I’ll do it,” I answer. We really need the storm windows and a steady income.
                  Jen beams. “It’ll be great having you at the pool!”
                  A thin woman with styled gray hair walks out from the back room. As always, Peggy is finely dressed in clothing reminiscent of the nineteen fifties. Today she is wearing a lovely blue sundress. She smiles when she sees us.
    “Hello, girls,” she says. “I thought you had all your school shopping done?”
                  “Hey, Peggy,” Jen responds. “I came to take a look at your new cleats, and Alex needs a